NEW ENTRY REQUIREMENTS

FOR THE POSTGRADUATE CERTIFICATE IN LAWS

This statement is issued by the Standing Committee on Legal Education

and Training. It applies to all students seeking admission to study the
Postgraduate Certificate in Laws in Hong Kong from September 2008
onwards.

Core Subjects

To be eligible for admission to the PCLL in Hong Kong from September 2008 onwards,
all students will have to demonstrate competence in 11 Core Subjects. These are

Contract Civil Procedure

Tort Criminal Procedure
Constitutional Law Evidence
Criminal Law Business Associations
Land Law Commercial Law
Equity

Graduates who hold a Bachelor of Laws degree from a university, other than one of the
three universities offering such degrees in Hong Kong, or other recognized law
qualification, acceptable to the PCLL providers may be able to demonstrate competence
in these 11 Core Subjects when such have been completed as follows:

(a) as part of their non-Hong Kong common law qualification; and / or

(b) as a visiting “internal” student in one of the three universities awarding LLB and /
or JD degrees in Hong Kong and passing the requisite examination; and / or

(c) by passing the relevant subject in the Hong Kong Conversion Examination for
PCLL Admission.

Top-up Subjects

Students who have not passed all of the following three subjects at a university LLB /
LLB double degrees / JD course in Hong Kong must also demonstrate competence in the
following three Top-up Subjects:

Hong Kong Constitutional Law Hong Kong Legal System

Hong Kong Land Law
Such students can demonstrate competence in the three Top-up Subjects in any one of the
following ways:

(a) as a visiting “internal” student in one of the three universities awarding LLB or
JD degrees in Hong Kong and passing the requisite examination; and / or

(b) as part of the Graduate Diploma in English and Hong Kong Law taught and
awarded in Hong Kong; and / or

(c) by passing the relevant subject in the Hong Kong Conversion Examination for
PCLL Admission.

Transitional Arrangements

Students who, on or before 1 September 2006, have successfully completed courses in

Business Associations and / or Evidence which are currently recognized for admission to
the PCLL will be exempted from the above requirements in respect of these two Core
Subjects.

The Hong Kong Conversion Examinations for PCLL Admission

Students who do not meet the above eligibility requirement for PCLL admission are not
required to attend any conversion courses. There will not be any mandatory Conversion
Courses. Students may prepare for the Hong Kong Conversion Examinations for PCLL
Admission through self-study or attend courses to prepare themselves for the Conversion
Examinations. The attendance at such courses is in itself insufficient to demonstrate
competence in the Core Subjects or Top-up Subjects.

Conversion Examinations will be offered twice a year in the following subjects:

Core Subjects: Civil Procedure

Criminal Procedure
Commercial Law
Evidence
Business Associations

Top-up Subjects: Hong Kong Constitutional Law

Hong Kong Legal System
Hong Kong Land Law

All other Core Subjects must be completed as part of a student’s main law qualification.